Erica's brother Beto appears as a documentary filmmaker who follows the Enterprise crew, culminating in a film presented within an episode. Beto's film interrogates Starfleet's identity, asking whether a Federation differs from an empire and asserting that the Federation's claims require scrutiny. The film initially pursues a muckraking exposé, framing Starfleet as problematic, but shifts tone and ends celebratory, producing a conflicted message. The episode and the in-world documentary mirror one another's indecision, and an in-world catalyst forces Beto to revise his view. The episode continues Strange New Worlds' pattern of experimenting with format and reflexive storytelling.
From the moment this season introduced Erica's brother Beto as a documentary filmmaker allowed to tail the Enterprise crew as part of his latest project, it seemed inevitable that we'd get a look at the finished product in the form of an episode. Strange New Worlds's willingness to break with the expected episodic format has almost become an expectation at this point, particularly after " A Space Adventure Hour," which opened with scenes of the show within the show.
Starfleet presents themselves as our quadrant's shining example of duty, honor, peacekeeping," Beto asks in the film's opening narration. "But what separates a Federation from an empire?" That's a perfectly legitimate question Star Trek probably hasn't asked enough over the years, if only to confirm its core values. There are easy answers. The Federation is founded on lofty, democratic ideals and a desire to explore the unknown. It doesn't force anyone to join. It wants to expand but not in the name of profit and not to serve the interests of a centralized ruling body.
The problems with "What is Starfleet?," the episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, and What Is Starfleet?, Beto's film within that episode, are one and the same: They can't make up their mind about what they are. Judging Beto's film on its own merits, it starts to contradict itself halfway through, beginning as a takedown but ending as a celebration and consequently appears like a wishy-washy movie with no clear point of view.
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